


shift, change

by fangirl_squee



Category: Friends at the Table (Podcast)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, M/M, Multi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-19
Updated: 2020-10-19
Packaged: 2021-03-09 04:08:04
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,733
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27098608
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fangirl_squee/pseuds/fangirl_squee
Summary: Romance in the time of shift changes; or Emmanuel plays matchmaker, for other people and for himself.
Relationships: Emmanuel Aracia La Salle/Fero Feritas, Emmanuel Aracia La Salle/Fero Feritas/Lem King, Emmanuel Aracia La Salle/Lem King, Fero Feritas/Lem King
Comments: 8
Kudos: 16





	shift, change

**Author's Note:**

> thanks to Arp and Annie, for the idea.

Emmanuel looked up as the bell above the door chimed, a smile forming on his face as he saw who it was. He only really got regulars coming through as this hour, and he was particularly fond of this particular regular.

Fero hopped up onto the counter stool, taking off his fraying baseball cap and running his hand through his hair, making it stick up at odd angles.

“Long night?” said Emmanuel, pouring Fero his coffee.

“Couple of lost hikers, nothing major,” said Fero, “They weren’t even that lost, like, they were ten feet from the trail, but- things look different in the woods at night to people, I guess. So we had to go out and get ‘em and then help them find their campsite.” He took a long sip of coffee. “And there was a thing with a bear.”

Emmanuel laughed, turning away to put Fero’s usual food order through to the kitchen. “Only you would call that a quiet night.”

“It was!” said Fero, “I mean, weather-wise, it was great, you should-”

Emmanuel looked back over his shoulder and Fero cut himself off, colour rising to his cheeks.

“I should… ?” prompted Emmanuel.

Fero set his mug down, rolling it against his palms. “You should go camping there, sometime. I mean, with your- with someone. Or whatever.”

Emmanuel hummed. “You could always show me around.”

“I would if you- If you weren’t always working,” said Fero.

“I am not always working,” said Emmanuel, “You just only ever see me at the start of my shift.”

“Well you only ever see me at the end of mine,” said Fero, “Maybe-”

The bell chimed behind Emmanuel, Blake sliding Fero’s plate towards him through the service window. Emmanuel turned to get it.

“ _ Maybe- _ ” Fero yawned, cutting off his question.

“Perhaps one day our days off will align and we’ll be awake for enough hours at the same time to do something,” said Emmanuel.

Fero huffed a laugh. “Yeah, maybe.”

  
  


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“Have you made a decision yet?” said Emmanuel.

The man, who had been seated at the counter for the past twenty minutes as he poured over the menu, looked up sharply. “I- no, I haven’t, sorry, I can, uh- a coffee? Sorry, I just need another few minutes.”

Emmanuel nodded, carefully pouring the coffee. He paused for a moment after he set it in front of the man. “I can… suggest something, if you like?”

“I-” the man blinked. “Oh, I- yes, actually, that would be- I mean it all looks so good, and it’s hard to know- I mean, I stopped in here because I thought it would be easier than choosing what to make for dinner, but I seem to be having the same problem, just in a new location.”

Emmanuel smiled. “I have just the thing.”

He slid the menu out from under the man’s palm’s, turning to put the order through.

“Wait,” said the man, “what are you going to order?”

“Ah,” said Emmanuel, “You will just have to wait and see.”

He put through the order for a caramelised onion tart with a side salad, feeling the man’s gaze on him as he did so. Emmanuel looked back out of the corner of his eye, taking in the proud angle of the man’s nose, the slope of his broad shoulders, the way his wide glasses caught the setting sun as it came through the window.

“Did you really just stop here because you couldn’t think of anything to cook?” said Emmanuel.

“I could think of things, just too many of them,” said the man, “I- long day, I suppose.” He paused. “It, uh, must be the same for you, I imagine?”

Emmanuel smiled. “Yes, but my shift is almost over.”

“Oh,” said the man, a blush faintly colouring his cheeks. “I- well. I’m glad I caught you before you left.”

The bell chimed behind Emmanuel. As he got the man’s plate he caught sight of Calhoun coming in the back. He waved to Emmanuel, moving to put his stuff away and get his apron before he took over for the next shift.

“Just in time, too,” said Emmanuel, “Here, enjoy.”

“I’m sure I will,” said the man, distracted enough by the food that Emmanuel was sure he would enjoy it.

Emmanuel glanced over his shoulder at him as he headed into the back. Calhoun clapped him on the shoulder as they passed, and Emmanuel gave him a tired smile.

“Oh,” said Emmanuel dragging his hand over his face, “the man at the counter- I haven’t given him his cheque yet, and he seems like- well, a little vague.”

“I’ll remind him,” said Calhoun.

“But- gently,” said Emmanuel, “I think he’s had a hard day.”

Calhoun held up his hands. “For you? I will be gentle.”

Emmanuel smiled. He stopped outside the back door, sitting on an old milk crate to light a cigarette. He was tired, yes, but he wanted to relax a little before he drove home. He looked up as he heard the sound of someone hurriedly approaching, expecting to see Calhoun, or even Blake, and blinking in surprise as he saw the man from earlier coming towards him.

The man opened his mouth and then closed it again. “I- Sorry, you’re on your break, I should-”

“I’ve finished my shift, actually,” said Emmanuel.

The man’s blush deepened. “Oh, then- I am sorry, I just- it was a lovely meal, and I’ve only just moved here and it’s been such a dreadful day, and I didn’t- I suppose I felt rude, not saying thank you.”

“So you thought you would follow me out here?” said Emmanuel.

“Well, I- I mean, when you put it that way, I was just- sorry-” The man peered closed at Emmanuel’s chest. It took Emmauel a moment to realise it was because he was still wearing his name badge. “-Emmanuel. Oh, that’s a lovely name.”

“Thank you, I chose it myself,” said Emmanuel, “But I’m afraid you have put me at a disadvantage. You know my name, but I do not know your’s.”

“I, uh- my name is Lem, Lem King.”

He stuck out his hand, cheeks immediately flushing with colour again. Emmanuel took pity on him, rising to his feet to shake Lem’s hand. Lem felt more comfortable than he looked, his palm warm and lightly calloused. The touch lingered slightly longer than Emmanuel had meant it to before he pulled back.

“Would you mind if I…?” said Emmanuel gesturing with the cigarette.

“No, not at all, please,” said Lem.

Emmanuel sat back down. After a pause, Lem stepped forward and sat on the other crate next to him. Emmanuel paused, considering him for a moment before offering him the cigarette.

“I’m afraid it was my last one,” said Emmanuel, “so we’ll have to share.”

“Oh,” said Lem, “Oh, that’s- that’s fine.”

Their fingers brushed again as Emmanuel passed him the cigarette and this time Emmanuel felt a blush rise to his cheeks. Lem took a long drag of the cigarette before he passed it back to Emmanuel, the contact lingering.

“I hope you don’t mind me being here,” said Lem.

“Not at all,” said Emmanuel, “Although, I admit, I did not expect it.”

“What did you expect?”

“To smoke and then get in my car and go home,” said Emmanuel with a laugh, “Why, what did  _ you  _ expect?”

“I- I don’t quite know,” said Lem, “It’s just been a very awful day, and there was something about this place that seemed like a good spot.”

“Well, I certainly try,” said Emmanuel.

“Oh, you- do you own this place?”

“With a few other people,” said Emmanuel.

“Still,” said Lem, “That’s- I just work in- well, technically it’s part of the museum, but it’s really more of a collections library. It’s- most of the time it’s quite good, but there are times that I… I suppose on nice days like today, I wish I didn’t work in the basement all the time.”

“Perhaps you should spend more of your free time outdoors,” said Emmanuel. He thought, oddly, of Fero. Perhaps there was something in the tired slope of Lem’s shoulders that brought him to mind. “Go for a hike somewhere.”

Lem fumbled the cigarette a little as Emmanuel handed it to him. “A- sorry?”

Emmanuel frowned. “It was just a suggestion. I suppose you could just as easily go for a walk along the beach, but the drive is a little further from here.”

“No, I- sorry,” said Lem, “Sorry, you just- it reminded me of someone, used to be his suggestion all the time when we were- friends.”

Emmanuel hummed, and didn’t push it. The tension eased out of Lem’s shoulders as they passed the cigarette back and forth between them between breaths, their shoulders inches from one another’s. There was a warmth in Emmanuel’s chest from their closeness, like the steady glow of the cigarette.

“Well,” said Emmanuel, “thank you for the company.”

“Oh, no, it was my pleasure,” said Lem, “Maybe I’ll… see you again some time?”

“If you come back here again I am sure that you will,” said Emmanuel.

“Good,” said Lem, “that’s- I look forward to it.”

Emmanuel smiled. The warm feeling stayed with him as he drove home, the cafe, and Lem, growing smaller behind him.

  
  


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Fero bounced in his chair, dried mud flaking off his jacket, as he told a very long story that involved two bogged cars, a family of deer, and a researcher on the hunt for a rare species of frog. Emmanuel felt relieved and glad that it had been a quiet morning so far. Relieved, in that they wouldn’t get any complaints about Fero’s loud enthusiasm, and glad, in that it meant he could focus solely on Fero, his grin bright and movements quick as he spoke.

“Well,” said Emmanuel, “It sounds like  _ quite _ a night.”

“It really was!” said Fero, “See, this is the kind of stuff you could see all the time if you ever came up.”

“But the way you tell it, I feel like I was already there,” said Emmanuel.

An odd expression flickered over Fero’s face. “What?”

Emmanuel frowned. “You are just so good at describing it, is what I meant. Very vivid.”

“I-” Fero shook himself. Mud flaked off of his hair, sprinkling on the counter. “Nothing, it was just- kind of reminded me of the excuse my ex would always make for not going hiking with me. Not that I think you’re making excuses! I know you’re busy with this place, and we’re not-”

Fero’s cheeks flushed and he looked down, picking at a loose thread on his cap. Emmanuel put his hand over Fero’s. Fero inhaled sharply, looking up.

“I would like to go with you, someday,” said Emmanuel, “But what I meant is that I like listening to you speak.”

Fero pressed his lips together. “I- you don’t have to say stuff like that. I know I-”

“I say it because I mean it,” said Emmanuel, cutting Fero off. “I say it because I want  _ you _ to  _ know _ that I mean it.”

Fero swallowed. “I- thanks. I mean, I like listening to you too, obviously.”

Emmanuel smiled. “Obviously.”

Fero’s smile back was a little shaky, but warm. He lingered in the diner for a full half hour longer than he usually stayed, until the breakfast rush started in earnest and Emmanuel was too busy to keep up a conversation.

  
  


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Lem became something of a regular after that. Not quite as regular as Fero, but regular enough. Also unlike Fero, he tried something different every time.

“It makes it so much easier to choose,” said Lem, “because even if something looks equally as good as the thing I ordered, well, I can just order that next time.”

Afterwards, he would walk with Emmanuel to his car and the two of them would lean against the sun-warmed side of it and watch the sun go down, so close that their shoulders were almost touching.

“This  _ is _ nice,” said Lem.

“I told you,” said Emmanuel.

Lem hummed. “I still don’t think I could go hiking though, I…” He looked away. “I think it would remind me too much of my… of a friend that I used to have.” He paused. “He used to live around here too, I think. Maybe he still does, I don’t know. Maybe he finally moved into the mountains to live or something. He was always talking about it-” Lem’s cheeks flushed. “Sorry, I don’t know why I- Not very polite of me, to go on like this.”

Emmanuel looked at him out of the corner of his eye, careful not to frighten Lem with the full weight of his attention. “I don’t mind at all. I- I am glad that you feel like you can tell me these things.”

Lem waved a hand. “It was just so long ago and he was such an idiot. I was too, I suppose. Not a very flattering time of my life.”

“We all have those.”

“You don’t,” said Lem, “Or, I’m sure if you do it’s not as bad as all that.”

“And neither it your’s, I’m sure.”

“I don’t think Fero would agree with you on that,” said Lem.

Emmanuel stilled. “What?”

“Oh, that was- Fero was- he’s who I used to- used to be friends with,” said Lem.

“I see,” said Emmanuel.

He took a slow breath in. It wasn’t as though there could only be one Fero in the world. No need to make his life more complicated over nothing.

  
  


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Life, of course, refused to remain uncomplicated. Fero had come into the cafe in a prickly mood and remained that way despite Emmanuel’s best efforts. It was unlike Fero to so hold onto a dark mood, and even more unlike him to barely manage a smile as Emmanuel refilled his coffee.

“Fero,” said Emmanuel, “are you… are you alright?”

“Yeah,” said Fero, “Of course. Obviously. Just like, I love spending my time working out other people’s relationship problems because one of them decided to end an argument by running into the woods. So  _ stupid _ , and it just made me think of-”

His mouth snapped shut and he looked away. Emmanuel leaned over the counter, putting a hand on Fero’s shoulder.

“You do not have to tell me,” said Emmanuel, “But you know that I am here to listen if you would like to.”

Fero let out a breath. “It’s just- it’s not like I’m not over him, it’s been like ten years, but it just- it reminded me of this idiot guy I used to know, and the stupid fights we used to have.”

“You must have cared about him a lot to fight about anything while you were in the woods,” said Emmanuel.

Fero wrinkled his nose. “I mean, maybe, but I don’t ever want to see Lem King’s dumb, handsome,  _ stupid _ face ever again.”

Luckily Fero was too distracted to notice Emmanuel’s surprise.

Emmanuel himself was distracted for the rest of the day, and he felt almost glad that this was an afternoon that Lem didn’t come into the cafe. He wasn’t quite sure he would have been able to stop himself from asking whether Lem remembered Fero with as much vivid detail as Fero seemed to remember him.

Ten years was an awful long time to remember somebody with such clarity of emotion. Emmanuel thought about them on the drive home. Ten years would have been right before Fero had joined the National Parks Service, right at the end of Lem’s second history degree. Ten years would have been right before Calhoun had asked him if he could give him a ride as far out of their hometown as possible. All of them, right on the edge of the rest of their lives without knowing it.

He wondered if he would have been as fond of them both as he was now if he had met them then, but perhaps that didn’t matter. Emmanuel had what he had always had, the current moment in time, moving him forward, bringing him to both of them in this moment.

The real question was what he was going to do about it.

  
  


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“You know,” said Lem, “This will be the last time I see you- in the afternoon, I mean.”

“Oh?” said Emmanuel.

“Yes, it’s very exciting actually. They finally approved my request to change departments, and my hours are different enough that I think I’ll probably miss you in the afternoon,” said Lem, “So, I’ve decided I’m going to just get up earlier and come in the morning instead!”

Emmanuel went very still. “The morning?”

“Yes,” said Lem, taking a bite to punctuate the word. “I remember you said that you start a little before sunrise and, well, I probably can’t be  _ that _ early, but I’ll try to find a quiet time to come in. If I- I think if I stopped coming in here altogether I would miss you.”

“I would miss you too,” said Emmanuel.

Lem’s cheeks flushed. “Well! That’s sorted then!”

“Yes,” said Emmanuel, trying to ignore the twisting feeling in his stomach, “all sorted.”

  
  


🌅🌅🌅🌅

  
  


It took Lem a few weeks to get his timing right. He missed a week altogether, and Emmanuel found that he did miss him, their quiet conversations out the back of the cafe, the feeling of Lem’s fingers brushing against him as they passed a cigarette back and forth. A handful of times he arrived too late, the breakfast rush in full swing and leaving them no time to really talk.

By the time that he got the timing right, Emmanuel had almost forgotten what he was worried about. When Lem walked in and sat beside Fero, it took Emmanuel about five seconds to remember.

“Fero?” said Lem.

“ _ Lem _ ?” said Fero, “What the  _ fuck _ , aren’t you suppose to be in  _ Europe _ ?”

“That was for  _ one semester _ ,” said Lem, “what are you- why are you here? And that’s my seat!”

“First of all this is a cafe, the seat belongs to anyone,” said Fero, “second of all, if it was anyone’s seat it would be  _ my  _ seat, because this is where  _ I _ sit when I come here after work.”

“I didn’t know you came here,” said Lem.

“Obviously,” said Fero coldly, “Otherwise I bet you would have run out of here.”

“What do you- oh, you’re not still mad about  _ that _ are you?” said Lem.

“You  _ ruined _ the whole camping trip!”

“ _ I _ ruined it? What about  _ you _ giving me the silent treatment while we were lost in the woods!”

“We weren’t lost!” said Fero, “We just had to re-find the trail!”

“It took two hours!”

“ _ So _ ?!” said Fero, “You couldn’t spend two hours enjoying nature?”

“Not when I thought we were going to  _ die _ !”

Emmanuel cleared his throat. They both looked towards him, matching expressions of old hurt on their faces. Fero’s eyes went wide, and he looked back at Lem, and then at Emmanuel again.

“Wait,” said Fero, “Wait, are you- is this why you never wanted to go hiking with me?”

“No, I-” began Emmanuel.

“You were trying to take  _ Emmanuel  _ hiking?” said Lem. He turned back to Emmanuel. “Wait, is that why you never wanted to get dinner with me?”

“You have dinner  _ here _ ,” said Emmanuel, “Why would I have asked you to dinner?”

“Well, obviously, since you’re, you know-”

“You asked him to  _ dinner _ ?” said Fero, “Wait, were you-”

“I would not have been opposed to either of these,” said Emmanuel, “hiking and dinner both sound nice to me for different reasons, and I would love to do both but didn’t the both of you-”

“No,” said Lem.

“Sort of,” said Fero, at the same time. He shot Lem a glare.

“Yes, well, sort of,” said Lem, “it was a long time ago-”

“Not long enough,” said Fero.

“-and you were hiking for most of it,” said Lem.

“Not  _ this  _ again,” said Fero.

“You don’t get to be  _ this again _ about it when  _ you _ -”

“Oh so now I’m not even allowed to be mad?” said Fero, sliding off the stool.

“It’s been ten years!” said Lem, “Why are you still angry about it?!”

“Why are  _ you _ ?!”

Lem opened his mouth and then closed it again.

Fero huffed a breath. “Whatever. Emmanuel, sorry for yelling, and I guess sorry for messing up your chance with Lem King although honestly I think I saved you a lot of trouble.”

He turned around, slamming the cafe door so hard the window rattled.

“Fero,” said Lem, running out behind him, “Fero, you can’t just-”

The door slammed shut behind him. The cafe seemed oddly quiet now that no one was yelling.

The bell chimed behind him and Emmanuel turned, feeling slightly dazed, to collect a food order. Blake met his eyes through the service window, raising their eyebrows at him.

“Your  _ life _ , man,” said Blake.

Emmanuel sighed.

There was the sound of the door opening, and Emmanuel looked up to see Fero peeking his head back in. He waved, looking a little sheepish.

“I wanted to say, uh, sorry, about before,” said Fero, “You don’t- that stuff’s all between me and Lem, you don’t need it.”

“It was… a lot,” said Emmanuel carefully.

“Yeah, uh- Lem’s not here?” said Fero.

“Lem is looking for you,” said Emmanuel, “He ran out after you.”

Fero blinked. “Oh, I didn’t- I didn’t see him, I mean, he never used to…”

“Ten years is a long time,” said Emmanuel, 

“Yeah,” said Fero, “Yeah, I guess so.” He paused. “I, uh, I get it, if you’d rather I find somewhere else to get breakfast. I wouldn’t want to bother you and Lem’s… to bother you and Lem.”

“There is no me and Lem,” said Emmanuel, “and you’re never a bother.”

Fero’s cheeks flushed and he rubbed the back of his neck. “Okay, but I- if that changes, you can always, I mean- I’ll miss you but it’s fine.”

“You don’t need to do that,” said Emmanuel, “I- you should keep coming in whenever you like. You know I enjoy seeing you.”

“I- you too,” mumbled Fero, “I- okay. See you tomorrow, I guess.”

Like ships passing in the night, Lem arrived back fifteen minutes later.

“Perhaps you should come back in the morning,” said Emmanuel, “Fero will probably be back then.”

“I- is that- I don’t know that he wants to see me right now,” said Lem.

“Instead of guessing,” said Emmanuel gently, “Why don’t you come back in the morning and ask him yourself?”

“I don’t know,” said Lem, “I mean- it’s been a long time, and I don’t- I know you two are, uh-”

“We’re not,” said Emmanuel. He reached out, squeezing Lem’s shoulder. “Come back in the morning.”

  
  


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Lem was already there when Emmanuel arrived for his shift.

“I, uh, I didn’t know how early Fero usually was,” said Lem.

“It’s late for him,” said Emmanuel, “He’s been covering the overnight shift at the national park.”

“Oh,” said Lem, “That’s- what kind of… he works for the national park?”

“When he gets here you can ask him yourself,’ said Emmanuel.

He poured Lem a cup of coffee and Lem took a sip, letting out a long sigh.

“I don’t know how you get up so  _ early _ ,” said Lem.

Emmanuel shrugged. “Practise.”

“I suppose, but I could never get the hang of it,” said Lem, “I actually-” He made a face. “Sorry, I should stop talking about Fero.”

“It’s okay,” said Emmanuel, “He’ll be here soon.”

“It’s not that I- I mean, I haven’t spent the last ten years thinking about him,” said Lem. His cheeks flushed. ”And I- I do like you, quite a bit.”

“I like you too,” said Emmanuel, “But I-”

The bell chimed, and Emmanuel and Lem both looked towards the door. Fero stood in the doorway, one hand still on the door handle. Emmanuel waved him in and he stepped forward, standing next to the stool he usually occupied.

“Uh, hi. Hey,” said Fero.

“Hi,” said Lem, “How was… Emmanuel said you worked overnights?”

Fero’s eyes flicked to Emmanuel, who busied himself with getting Fero’s usual order through.

“Yeah, I, uh- Just until we get another parks officer,” said Fero, “I’ve, uh, I feel like I spend every morning complaining about it to Emmanuel.”

“I like to hear your stories about it,” said Emmanuel.

Fero ducked his head, fiddling with the cap in his hands.

“Fero-” said Lem.

“Lem,” said Fero, mimicking his tone.

Lem made a face. “No, listen, I- about yesterday, I- that is I…”

Fero pressed his lips together. “Emmanuel said you tried to find me after I, uh, left here.”

“Yes,” said Lem, “I- I mean, I’m not sure what I was going to say, but I don’t- I don’t want this conversation to end like it did ten years ago.”

Emmanuel stepped back. The cafe was otherwise empty, perhaps he could just hide out the back until they finished reconciling. They certainly didn’t need him there to complicate things. On top of that, it was hard to stop the cold, squirming feeling in the pit of his stomach at the two of them together. 

He nudged Blake’s shoulder as he passed them. “Come get me if we get more customers.”

“What about those two?” said Blake, looking over Emmanuel’s shoulder.

“I’ll get them later,” said Emmanuel, “After- I’m just taking five minutes.”

He stepped outside into the cool morning air, his breath fogging the air in front of him. Emmanuel scrubbed a hand over his face, sitting down on one of the crates, then tipping his head to look up at the brightening sky. He would give himself five minutes to feel sad about lost possibilities, and then he would go back out and be happy for the both of them.

“Emmanuel?” said Lem.

Emmanuel looked up to see Lem and Fero poking their head out of the back door.

“You’re not allowed to be back there,” said Emmanuel.

“Blake let us through,” said Lem.

Emmanuel huffed a breath. “Of course they did. If you want to order I’ll be out in a minute”

“We don’t want to order,” said Fero, “We- we were looking for  _ you _ .”

“Why?” said Emmanuel, “You have each other.”

“Yes, but-” Lem started to say.

“But we don’t have  _ you _ ,” said Fero, over the top of him.

Lem’s cheeks flushed a dark pink. “Yes, well, I- yes.”

Emmanuel pressed his lips together. “But you-”

“We’re… thinking about it,” said Lem, “we agree about you, at least.”

“Finally, something in common!” said Fero.

Lem huffed a laugh. “Yes, I- Well, that is, if you’d like, what we’re trying to say is-”

Fero poked him in the side.

“Would you like to go camping with us?” said Lem.

Emmanuel raised his eyebrows. “Camping?”

“Yeah,” said Fero, “I know, I couldn’t believe that was his suggestion either.”

“ _ Fero _ ,” said Lem.

“Well, I can’t! I mean, I like that you want to go, that part rules, but I’m still surprised.”

Lem ducked his head in an attempt to hide a smile, tucking a strand of hair behind his ear. “Well. I thought this way, Fero would have someone to hike with who might enjoy it, and I would have someone to cook with at the campsite who might enjoy  _ that _ .”

“He’s a terrible cook,” whispered Fero.

“You’re worse,” said Lem.

“I know,” said Fero, “That’s why you cook.”

“ _ I’ll _ cook,” said Emmanuel.

Lem looked up at him. “Oh, so you’ll- you’ll come? With us?”

Emmanuel smiled up at them. “I’d love to.”

Lem smiled back, the corners of his eyes crinkled. “Wonderful.”

“Yeah!” said Fero, “Finally! I have, like, million hiking trails I want to do with you.”

“I don’t know that I can do a million hikes in one trip,” said Emmanuel, “You’ll have to spread them out over each camping trip.”

“Each?” said Lem, “As is, more than one camping- okay, but remember, you did promise to balance out camping with something  _ nice _ , like a dinner, or going to a play, or-”

Fero grinned. “Yeah, okay. Okay, we’ll spread them out, and in between we’ll do dinners and plays and sometimes maybe we’ll even do something Emmanuel likes too.”

Emmanuel laughed, letting Lem and Fero help him to his feet. “We’ll see. I like the sound of all of those things already.”

**Author's Note:**

> come say hi: mariusperkins on most places


End file.
